Phoenix
by Sammy Heroes
Summary: (AU: In which Red is secretly a phoenix) Secrets are meant to be keep hidden and Red has been doing that all his life. His friends don't know, nobody does. Sometimes that secret has been close to be revealed. But when the pigs attack the island again, Red is forced to reveal who he truly is and reveal the secret that he was forced to hide. (oneshot)


**AU: In which Red is secretly a phoenix.**

 **Some things might change from the movie to fit this AU. Incendio (OC) belongs to me.**

Phoenix:

When he hatched, he hatched like a normal hatchling. From a creamy white egg and there was nothing in his appearance that gave away he was something more, though, Red didn't know that at the time. He looked like any other bird with wings, talons and eyes. Except for the eyebrows, but that was just him.

All his life he had been humiliated, mentally tortured and bullied, facts that contributed to his eventual anger issues. But just when he reached puberty, his life truly changed. He didn't know if it was better or for worse, but all he knew was that other birds would freak out and bully him even more. So he vowed to keep it a secret at all costs.

He was twelve and he was angry. He walked through the forest, into the depths so no one would see him. He was angry and upset. How could those awful kids keep reminding him that he had no parents? They were just awful. He went inside a small cave he had found during one of his trips and made it his secret hideout. He had brought a few carving materials with him and left them there in the cave so he could carve stuff to pass the time with no one to bother him. He grabbed a carving knife and a piece of wood and started carving. He was furious. How could they? Why did they kept reminding him that he had no family and no friends? To make themselves feel better about themselves? What a bunch of losers.

He didn't know how it happened, but the next thing he knew his hand was on fire. He yelled in panic and threw away the carving piece and knife and tried to put away the fire in his hand. It took him a moment to realize that the flames weren't actually burning him. He did not feel any heat or burn. He hesitantly inspected the flames dancing between his tiny fingers and then… they disappeared. Red gasped in amazement. He took a deep breath and concentrated on lighting the flames again. They did. Red stared in shock and decided to try something different. He put his other hand over the one with flames and then pulled it away. A small ball of flames danced between his hands. Suddenly, his wings lit on fire. He gasped and ran outside into the lake. A small cloud of smoke followed him after stepping out of the lake.

When he got back to the village, he went to the orphanage to get a pen and notebook and then he made his way towards the library. He searched for the myths and legends section and when he finally found it, he went inside. There was a female white bird a few years older than him grabbing her things to leave. He gulped and decided to ask her. "Excuse me?"

The white bird smiled at him. She was a teenager. "Yes?" Her gaze looked peaceful and relaxed.

"Do you know if there's a book here about mythical creatures?"

"Oh! Yes, there is!" She walked towards one of the book shelves and after a few seconds of searching, she retrieved one heavy looking book. It was old, dusty and a faded brown with a golden symbol in the middle of a flying bird. "This one is good. It has all about the mythical creatures." She placed it on the table. "Here."

"Thanks."

"But," The white female started. "Aren't you a little young to be searching mythical creatures?"

"Um…" Red quickly thought of a lie. "I was just interested, that's all."

"Oh! Well, then. I got to go. Ask the librarian if you need anything. Namaste." She put her hands together, bowed and left.

"What a weird girl…" He shook his head. He sighed and started to look thought the index. He wanted to know about fire creatures. He didn't know where he came from and then suddenly being able to bend fire at his will, let alone create it? There had to be something supernatural about that.

He waved through the pages until he found the section he was looking for: Phoenix.

He gulped and started reading.

 _This mythical bird has the ability to bend, create and command fire at its will. It cannot be armed by it. Said that is born from the sun, this majestic creature is many times considered the spirit of fire itself. Its immortality comes from burning down and creating a new body with those ashes. But not all phoenixes are immortal. Some are demi-phoenixes, still a phoenix, but without the immortality. This kind of phoenix is a descendant from a pure phoenix and a normal bird. To notice the different between a pure phoenix and a demi-phoenix is the eyes. Pure phoenixes' eyes are fire it selves while demi-phoenixes' eyes turn into a glowing red color when powers are in use._

 _Phoenixes are bigger than any bird, topping the eagles by a head. They have a long wing span and they lit when the bird takes flight. They are also used as a weapon._

 _Phoenixes who mate with normal birds tend to leave their eggs on certain areas populated by birds so they can be raised by normal birds. Proved information does not exist, but theories do. The most accurate theory would be that phoenixes don't want to see their hatchlings grow old and die and not regenerate, therefore, they just raise the ones that are pure phoenix._

Red took a moment to process what he had just read. He was a phoenix, a demi-phoenix, but still a bird that could control fire. Now he understood why his parents abandoned him… the weirdest thing was that he didn't even felt angry about it. Red wrote down this information on his notebook. Now he understood why his wings lit themselves. After doing so, he continued to the next page. There were different kinds of ways and positions phoenixes apparently used to control their powers. He looked at the third page and saw the image of a majestic female phoenix with a crown made of fire.

 _This phoenix's name is Incendio, the queen of all phoenixes and the most powerful. Her offspring tend to be stronger than others, but none can be stronger than her._

Red looked at the image of the phoenix queen for several minutes. He took a deep breath and checked to see if someone was looking at him. No one was. He quickly took of pages two and three, folded them down and hid them inside his notebook. He checked to see if there was any more information on phoenixes, but there was none. Nodding to himself, he closed the book and placed it back in its place. He took his notebook and quietly walked out of the library. He went back to the orphanage and every night, when no one was looking, he locked the door and practiced his powers.

And that's where our story begins…

OOO

After a birthday party gone wrong, Judge Peckinpah sent him to take anger management classes. It went well, kind of. He met the weirdest birds he had ever seen and one of them literary blew up. He _seemed_ to be the only bird there without a power, though that wasn't entirely true. He wouldn't admit it, but he kind of liked the company for a change. And the classes were supposed to help him manage his anger.

In reality, it wasn't exactly anger what he felt, but his powers trying to come out. Yes, he did feel anger towards his society and yes, he did had issues, but mostly, his powers were just trying to break free. Since he learned he was a phoenix, he taught himself to control his powers. He did pretty well, but the real problem was trying to conceal them. They would try to slip away and there were times when he couldn't stop it. During those times, he would go to that old cave and release his powers there.

But as he grew into an adult, he had less time to do so and it only contributed to his anger issues. He could feel the fire inside him trying to break free. As adult, his powers also grew stronger. One day, when he went to the cave to release some steam, he looked down at the small lake inside the cave and saw his eyes glowing red and his body was covered in strange ancient symbols that glowed a bright yellow. When the fire calmed down, his appearance was back to normal and it was then he knew his powers had to be a secret for sure. He also discovered that when cold water touched his body after using even the smallest amount of power, small lines of steam will come out from his feathers.

The anger management classes helped him to keep the fire in control and go long periods of time without having the need to set everything on fire. Nobody suspected a thing. Although, Matilda sometimes looked at him with curious eyes, like searching for something, but he let it slide and decided she just wanted to get to know him.

Then the pigs came and he had never so on edge before. It felt like in any given moment, the flames would burst out of his body and he was irritable at all times. There was something wrong going on, but no one seemed to believe him. No one did except Chuck and Bomb. Kind of. And Mighty Eagle. Kind of. He turned out to be a…

Never mind.

When the pigs stole the eggs, the birds turned to him for guidance, which was super ironic and the tables were turned. They built a boat and set sail for Piggy Island to retrieve back the eggs. They won, they defeated Leonard and went back home with the eggs… blah, blah, blah… The important thing was that the eggs were safe and his powers were still a secret.

Back in his newly rebuild home in the village, Red played with fire. Literary. Flames danced boringly in one hand while he mindlessly changed the TV channels with the other. There was a tiny hint of reed in his eyes as he looked down at the flames. Should he tell them? No. They might think he was a weirdo. He sighed and closed his hand into a fist, the flames turned into smoke. Suddenly, he felt a weird sensation in his chest. A strong one. He stood up and gasped as the sensation grew stronger. His chest felt heavy and it was difficult to breath. Something was wrong.

His eyes suddenly turned glowing red and he quickly closed them.

' _Come here…'_ He heard a soft and gentle female voice.

Red looked around to see where did the voice come from. It took him a moment to realize that it was inside his head.

 _'Follow me…'_

"Who are you?" He asked.

' _You'll see…'_

Red looked around. "How do I find you?"

 _'In your secret cave…_ '

Red's eyes widened, now back to their normal reddish brown color, and quickly hurried towards the cave. It took him ten minutes to get to the entrance. He looked behind his back to see if anyone had followed him. Once he was sure, he quietly stepped inside the cave. He walked towards the end where some water of the lake outside got in, forming a mini lake inside. There was no one around. He sighed and chuckled. He was definitely going crazy. He turned around to leave when suddenly a warm glow shined behind him.

 _'Red?'_

Red slowly turned and gasped at the sight. In front of him stood the most beautiful bird he had ever seen. Just like in the book, the bird stood one head taller than an eagle and her eyes were made of fire. Her feathers emitted a heavenly glow and her long legs made her look regal. Her wings, obviously meant to fly, wrapped her body. They looked to be even bigger than Mighty Eagle's. A crown of fire hovered on her head.

"Incendio…" Red whispered in awe.

Incendio gave him a gentle smile. "So you know my name."

"What…" Red asked. "What are you doing here?"

Incendio laughed. "I came to see my son."

Red gulped. "Son?"

Incendio nodded. "That's right, Red. You are my son, _Prince_ Red."

"Prince!?" He almost yelled. This was so overwhelming.

Incendio laughed again. Even her laugher was heavenly. "Yes, Red. Prince. You are my son and I am the queen of phoenixes, therefore, you are a prince."

Red stared at her in awe. "I'm… I'm really your son? You're… you're really my… mom?" Now that he closely looked at her, her red feathers were the same color as his and the glowing yellow ancient patterns on her plumage were the same. There was some kind of resemblance. Incendio smiled and turned into a smaller form, like him. The large wings were gone, being replaced by normal wings, there was no fire around, but her eyes were an unnatural orange. Her tail feathers were black and her head feathers looked just the most perfect way. And her feathers were the exact same red as him. "This is my mortal form." She said. "I believe that if I looked a bit younger, we could have been confused by siblings."

Red gasped in surprise.

Incendio walked a few steps towards him. "The patterns that glow when you use great amounts of power are not just any patterns, but royal ones and that identifies you as a phoenix prince."

"You mean, there are more?"

Incendio nodded. "I came here to tell you I'm proud of you. You showed great leadership skills when you saved those eggs and I can't be prouder." She smiled at him. Then, her face turned to one of worry. "I understand that you have read why phoenixes don't raise mortal children?"

Red nodded. Incendio smiled. "Good, then. I don't have to explain that to you."

Red nodded and sighed. "Why did you show up now?"

Incendio looked at him with pity. "Red, I'm queen. I have many responsibilities and sometimes my life can be dangerous for a mortal hatchling of mine. I've always watched over you, but I couldn't get close. Now that you've grown up, you can understand why."

Red nodded as he tried to blink away some tears.

"I also came to give you this." Incendio pulled out a book with a new red cover and a golden phoenix symbol on front. "It will help you control your powers. It's also fire proof just in case."

Red accepted the book. "I have two questions."

"Yes?"

"Who's my dad?"

Suddenly, Incendio started to laugh. Red arched an eyebrow. "Oh, Red. He's around. I think."

"OH, really? Who?"

"You'll have to find out by yourself."

"OH… And I have another question."

"Yes?"

"Can I… Can I hug you?"

Incendio looked taken aback by the question, but smiled all the same. "You may." She pulled him into a tight, motherly hug. Red rested his head on her shoulder and smiled. A few tears of happiness stained his cheek feathers. He had always wondered who was his mom and if she ever loved him. Now he had the answers to those questions and here he was hugging his mother. He pulled away and looked up at her.

"Well," She started. "I have to go. But remember that you can always count on me, my prince."

Red smiled at her. Incendio turned back into her godly form, turned around and vanished to a flame. Then, she was gone. Red looked down at the book. He smiled. He had family somewhere and his mother was the queen of all phoenixes, how cool was that?

For many days he read through the book and studied the movements. This were much easier than the notes he originally 'borrowed' from the library years ago and the best part was that the flames were in control.

One day he was reading a crafts magazines in the living room when suddenly Chuck busted through the front door. "Red!"

"What?"

"Listen, Matilda wants to-" Chuck stopped and smelled the air. "Why does it smell like smoke in here?"

Red started sweating. "I… um… I was… cooking! Yeah! And some of it got burnt."

Chuck looked at the kitchen but saw that nothing was out of place and no one had been there for the whole day. "Right…" He suspiciously said. He turned back to Red. "Oh, and Matilda wants to talk to you. Now." And then he left.

Red sighed and decided he shouldn't leave the white bird waiting. He made his way towards her house and knocked on the door. Matilda opened and smiled. "Red! Come in!"

"Thanks."

"I have some cookies if you want some." She made him follow her to the class room.

"Sure." They sat on some pillows and she gave him a plate of cookies. He thanked her and started eating some. "So! Chuck said you wanted to talk to me about something." He took a bite out of the cookie.

"Aw! Yes, well I need help with some information. I need to confirm something."

"Like what?"

"I don't know… like, how long will it take for that cookie to do its effect?"

Red just munched on his third cookie. "What effect?"

Matilda smiled. "No normal bird can take that much hot pepper. Less when he eats five cookies full of them. Not to mention those peppers are the hottest ones in the market."

Red stopped munching and looked down at the fifth cookie in hand. He gulped and put the cookie down. "Yeah? So?" He tried to calm down.

Matilda just smirked. "I have some suspicions, Red, that you are not entirely normal."

"Yep, you're right." Red said. "I'm a bird with anger issues and too many sarcastic remarks. Nope, I'm not normal."

For a second, Matilda looked like she wanted to murder him right on the spot, but quickly controlled herself. "Red, I have the suspicion that you are not just any kind of bird. I think that you're a phoenix."

Red laughed. "Yeah, sure. And Terrence likes playing with pony dolls."

Matilda just glared, grabbed a cup of water and threw the contents to Red. Red gasped when he felt the liquid being splashed into his face. He rubbed his eyes and then looked at Matilda, who was smirking. He instantly looked at his feathers, and they were emitting a light steam. "Shit…"

Matilda smiled. "I knew it."

"But… but how…"

"The peppers are super-hot and if a phoenix consumes them, it's the equivalent of a small fire. Your body uses power to make it easier for you to swallow a pepper with no sweat. So, if your body uses power and you're immediately thrown water at, your feathers will release steam. Only a phoenix does that." She smiled. "Besides, your mouth is smoking." She handed him a cup of water. There was indeed a small line of smoke coming from Red's mouth.

Red accepted the cup and drank it. "But that doesn't explain how the hell did you knew?"

Matilda sighed. "I remember a small red twelve year old asking for my help in the library, searching for mythological creatures."

Red gasped at the memory. "That was you!?"

Matilda nodded. "Years later, I went to investigate some weird smoke sightings in a cave. Days after that, I discovered that you were a frequent visitor of the cave. It was too much of a coincidence. But I just couldn't believe that you were a phoenix. So I let it slide. But years later, here you were and I must admit that a few times I stood beside you, you smelled a little bit like smoke. You had to be one!

Red blushed in embarrassment. "You're not telling anyone, are you?"

"Nope." Then she blushed a little. "Can I see? Your phoenix form, I mean."

Red sighed. "I'm actually a demi-phoenix, but ok." He stood up and went to the center of the room. He lit his arms on fire and suddenly, the glowing yellow marking started to appear on his feathers and his eyes glowed red. Matilda gasped. "You're… you're Incendio's son, are you?"

Red put out the fire and his body went back to normal. "It was the markings, weren't they?"

Matilda nodded. "I once saw them in an old book. Any phoenix with those markings was a child of the phoenix queen herself."

"Yeah, well, I just met her a week ago."

"YOU MET THE QUEEN!?"

"SHH!"

"Oh, sorry."

Red sighed. "I actually wanted to tell you guys about this, but I'm not ready."

"Don't worry, Red. I won't say a word."

Suddenly someone stepped right through the front door. "Matilda?" Chuck called from the other room. "It smells like smoke in here!"

Matilda and Red just shook their heads in amusement.

A couple of weeks passed by and his powers were fully under control. Chuck still kept complaining that his house smelled like smoke, so he decided to take his training to the cave. At night when everyone was surely asleep. He had decided not to bring his book this time so he could do it all by memory. On the way there, Chuck stopped him. "Red! It's the pigs! They are coming back! They are at the beach trying to steal the eggs again!" And he raced off to the beach. Red ran behind him.

The beach wasn't that far away and when he arrived he encountered the biggest chaos he had witnessed. The pigs tried to force the birds to give them the eggs, even trying to take them by force. But the birds fought, some were even using the slingshot and being thrown into the night sky. Pigs ran around chasing soon to be mothers and fathers for their precious eggs. He saw Early Bird and his wife and hatchlings running away from a couple of pigs chasing after their new egg. He saw Edward and Eva trying to help them. Their hatchlings helped Early Bird's hatchlings escape to a safer place.

Red also saw Stella and her friends getting thrown by the slingshot and using their powers to stop as many pigs as they could. Chuck's yellow blur could be seen running around and knocking off pigs while Bomb blew up a ship on the water. He ran towards a pair of hatchlings trying to save an egg while being cornered by three pigs. Red punched an unsuspecting pig in the face and kicked the other one on the stomach. The remaining pig ran off screaming. Red turned towards the hatchings. "Go! Hide!" The hatchlings nodded and rolled the egg towards a safe hideout. A building collapsed several feet away, ending with an explosion and fire. Birds ran away in fear.

Red saw Matilda trying to fight off some pigs while protecting a couple of eggs herself. But the pigs surrounded her and tried to take away the eggs. Suddenly, Terrence arrived and knocked and punched the pigs away. He grunted to Matilda who thanked him and ran away with the eggs while Terrence fought off more pigs.

Seeing that his friend was doing fine, Red wrestled a rather fat and big pig that tried to eat an egg on the spot, right in front of its parents. He took the egg away and gave it to the thankful parents, who quickly fled to hide. Above him, he saw Mighty Eagle taking out the pigs planes with ease. A couple of feet away he saw the Blues actually beating up a couple of pigs with their new found powers. He felt quite proud of the little guys.

Judge Peckinpah did pretty good himself for a little old guy. But Red could tell he was easily overwhelmed, not to mention outnumbered. He groaned. He was never a fan of the judge, but he sighed and went to help him anyway. He kicked the pig on the face, but this pig seemed to be prepared to fight. He managed to punch Red in the guts and threw him to the floor. It was a big pig, almost as big as Terrence. The pig smirked and grabbed Red by the neck. Red gasped for air and tried to free himself from the pig's grasp. He was about to burn the pig's hands when suddenly, he fell on the floor and gasped. The pig fell unconscious on the sand and Judge Peckinpah stood behind him, holding his judge mallet. He nodded to Red, grabbed the egg he was protecting and ran away.

Red rubbed his throat and winced in pain. He looked around. The pigs were still coming and trying to take the eggs. He saw Bomb ran to the middle of the beach. He was slightly holding his ribcage and a pained look covered his face. He unleashed a shockwave explosion that sent dozens of pigs back into the ocean. Bomb sat down, feeling overwhelmed by the sudden great amount of power he used. Red ran to him.

"Bomb! Are you ok?" Red said as he tried to help his friend get up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired, that's all."

Chuck speed towards them and tried to help Bomb get up by supporting his arm around his neck, even though Bomb was bigger than him. "You did great, buddy. Come on, you need a doctor." Indeed, Bomb needed a doctor. His rib area had been slightly slashed by a broken piece of wood a pig used in self-defense. Some splinters were left behind. He wasn't bleeding that much, but without proper care, it could get infected. He took slow breaths and tried to stay calm, otherwise he would get upset.

Red, upon seeing the state his friend was on, frowned. He looked back at Chuck and inspected him. Chuck's left eye was starting to turn purple and he was limping a little. He looked back at Bomb whose legs were trying to give up on him. The pigs did this to them. He looked around them. The pigs weren't giving up anytime soon and it seemed that many more pigs will come. He looked at one of the ships and saw Leonard shouting orders and smirking. He turned back to his friends. Chuck didn't seem like he could go for another run against the pigs and Bomb wasn't in any conditions to continue fighting. The beach was getting filled by more pigs by the minutes and terror was rising up again. He looked at the fallen building that was on fire.

 _Fire… One of the most beautiful, yet most dangerous element. Learn to control it, use it wisely, and it will obey you._

He got an idea. "Guys, listen. There's something I need to tell you…"

They looked at him, waiting for his confession.

"I…"

But suddenly, there was a canon fired at the distance and a lot of arrows came right to their way. Red gasped. He never thought that Leonard would give the order for such attack, he must have been really hungry. The birds tried to flee back into the forest, but Red knew they wouldn't be able to hide on time. Hatchlings were there. Chuck gasped in fear and quickly tried to limp away, but not without Bomb. Red knew they wouldn't make it, so he had no choice but to reveal the truth to everyone.

' _Are you ready, my prince?'_ He heard his mother's gentle voice.

 _'As ready as I'll ever be._ ' He mentally replied.

He looked at the arrows with a new found determination. With a frown, he calmly walked towards the opposite direction of safety.

Chuck and Bomb looked back. "Red! What are you doing!?" Bomb yelled.

Red didn't look back. He couldn't do it now when the lives of innocent birds were at his hands. He could feel the fire breaking lose. He could feel his talons grow hot, so hot that the sand he walked upon turned into crystals. His eyes glowed into the most dangerous shade of red ever seen and the glowing yellow markings in his feathers appeared. His wings were on fire. Fire was at his command. Not to mention he was super angry; nobody had the right to hurt his friends.

He raised his hands and shoot fire at the arrows, instantly disintegrating them. He heard many gasps behind him, but he ignored them. He concentrated on getting the dirty pigs off of his island first. He first decided to get the pigs out of the shore and scare them back to their ships. He looked up at a group of pigs and growled. One pig noticed him and screamed. "IT'S A PHOENIX! RUN!"

Red threw fire in their way, making them abandon any attempts at getting the eggs and swam back to their ships. He looked at another group and attempted the same thing. One of the pigs raised a water gun and shot water at the burning bird. The water didn't even reached him before it dissolved. The pigs yelled and quickly made a run, or rather swim, towards their ships. But there were still too many ships out in the water. Red lit a fireball out of his hand and threw it at the nearest ship. After reaching his mark, the other ships started to retreat, all except one: Leonard's. Red growled and threw another fireball, this time towards Leonard's ship. The veils instantly started to catch fire and the pigs inside tried to put out the fire. Leonard had no other but to give the order to retreat.

Red watched as the ship sailed away into the dark ocean. He sighed in relief. The fire inside started to slowly contain itself, but the glowing eyes and marks were yet to fade. Suddenly, he felt cold water being thrown at his back. The water instantly turned into steam as he turned around. He saw Chuck and Bomb holding a bucket of water and shocked expressions. It was probably the red eyes or the yellow markings. Red blinked.

"Well," Chuck said. "You're actually a phoenix. That explains why your house smells like smoke every once in a while." He put down the bucket and shifted all his weight on his good leg.

"I'm actually a demi phoenix." Red said as his appearance turned back to normal. He looked down and kicked away one of the crystals his burning talons made. "Not a _real_ phoenix."

"You burned down half of their ships! You were shooting fireballs out of your bare hands and your talons were so hot, they made the sand you touched turn into crystals! Not to mention that water literary turned into steam once it touched you. That's enough phoenix for me." Chuck said.

"Also, your mouth is smoking." Bomb said.

Red covered his mouth in embarrassment. He blew the remaining smoke away and sighed. He felt Chuck fearfully trying to touch his feathers. Playfully, he placed his hand on Chuck's shoulder, making the yellow bird flinch a little. "Relax, I'm not going to burn you."

"Ooh, ok."

Red saw his friends and the rest of the other birds stare at him in shock. Red instantly looked away. He just hoped he wasn't out casted again. He bit his lip in nervousness when no one seemed to make a move towards him or speak.

"Anyway, come on, Bomb. That wound needs to be checked. You too, Chuck." Red said as he helped Bomb walk towards the crowd.

"Hey, it's just a black eye."

"You're limping."

"Yeah, well, it'll be better in the morning."

"You're going to the doctor and that's final."

They reached the crowd. And that when the questions began.

"You're a phoenix!?"

"How come we never noticed?"

"Are you sure it's safe?"

"Guys!" Red yelled. "Let me just take this guys to the doctor and I'll answer questions later." He said and with that, he left with his friends towards the hospital. Matilda and Terrence followed behind.

After the doctor inspected Chuck's leg and bandaged Bomb's waist, they were left alone in the hospital room while the doctor went to inspect other patients. "So," Chuck started. "You're a phoenix." Terrence grunted.

"Demi phoenix, but yeah."

"Does anyone else know?" Bomb asked.

"Only Matilda." Red answered.

All eyes landed on Matilda, who awkwardly smiled. "Well, I did suspected something and I found out by myself. It's not like Red went up to me and told me. He did trusted me to keep the secret until he was ready." She grabbed Terrence's hand and smiled at him. Terrence gave her and adorable smile.

"Can you do other things like flying or turn you whole body on fire?" Bomb asked with a childish grin. Chuck waved his tail in his excitement.

"Turn myself completely on fire? Yes. Fly? Nope."

"Whoa… So your parents are phoenixes!"

Red sighed. "Chuck, I told you I'm a demi phoenix. Meaning that I'm not immortal and only one of my parents, my mother, is a phoenix."

"Your mother?" Bomb asked in shock.

"The queen of the phoenixes, Incendio." They heard. Red turned around to see Judge Peckinpah standing at the doorway with his sheriff hat in hand.

"How did you…?" Red asked, not believing his ears.

Peckinpah sighed. "The markings in your body. I studied mythical creatures a lot in my youth and I came across them. When I saw you, I recognized them right away as royal markings."

"YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THIS GUY'S A PRINCE!?" Chuck asked, more like yelled. Bomb just stared in awe. "Matilda!? Did you knew?" Chuck asked, Matilda nodded.

"SHH!" Red said. "Not so loud, Chuck."

"Oh, please." Chuck rolled his eyes. "At this stage, I think we could expect anything from you."

"Have you met her?" Bomb asked.

"Yeah, I did. About a few weeks ago."

Peckinpah cleared his throat to get their attention. "Mr. Red, if I may ask, why didn't you say anything?"

Red looked down. "I think you already know that answer, Judge." He meant the out casting and the possible exile out of fear of him.

"Right, right. Excuse me. But I seem to be obligated to ask, are your powers under control?"

Red looked at him. "Yeah, I've been under training. They're good."

Peckinpah nodded. "I see. Well, I must go now and inspect further repairs to the village." Then, the judge left.

"So, _Prince_ Red…" Chuck said with a sly smirk on his face, Bomb chuckled on the back, Terrence grunted in amusement and Matilda just smiled. "What would you, oh so great Excellency might need? Would you need silk pajamas? Oh wait! Better yet, would you like a cup of tea brewed in the Himalayas by monks with the most delicate care? Your humble peasants admire thy red feathers!" They all went into a fit of laughter. He went to the door and opened it. "Can I open the door for you, your majesty!?" He and Bomb started laughing. Red just chuckled, but quickly shut up when he saw Incendio in her mortal form standing in the doorway.

Red gulped and signaled Chuck to turn around. Chuck did with a smirk. But he encountered a par of glowing orange eyes. "You may." Incendio answered with a smile. Chuck screamed and hid behind Bomb. Terrence and Matilda stared in shock. Incendio stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. "I believe we have never met before." She looked at Red.

"Oh, right, um… Guys? This is my mother, Incendio. Mom? This are Bomb, Terrence, Matilda and the one and only, Chuck."

Chuck stepped forward and fell face first on the floor with his hands bowing to her. "Your majesty I am terribly sorry for my lack of tact. Please forgive me!"

Red face palmed and Incendio chuckled. "You don't have to kneel, Chuck. I'm not your queen."

"Still…" Chuck said, but stood up anyway. "You don't look like a phoenix, your majesty."

Incendio smiled. "That's because I'm in my mortal form. If I was in my true form, I'll be bigger than this gentleman here." She signaled Terrence, who blushed by being called gentleman. Matilda assured him he was one.

Incendio turned to Red. "I assume that you have been training." Red nodded. "Good." She said. "You did pretty well at the beach."

"Ugh… thanks."

"You're really mother and son. I can totally see the resemblance." Matilda commented.

Incendio smiled. "Well, I guess I'll be going then."

"You can stay for a few minutes?" Bomb asked.

Incendio sighed. "I'm immortal, I can't get too attached to… mortals." She eyed Red with a sad expression. She then smiled. "Besides, I have some business to attend to."

Chuck raise his hand. "I'll open the door for you, your majesty."

"No thanks. I'll use the window." Incendio calmly said. She ran up the window and jumped.

Red and his friends ran to the window and looked down, only to be surprised by a big flaming bird with a fire crown flying towards the night sky. The birds stared in awe as the bird engulfed in flames disappeared into the distance.

"Can you do that?" Chuck asked Red.

"Do what?"

"Change forms?"

"Yeah, I can and you already saw it at the beach." Red said as he turned away from the window. "But I can only do it when I use large amounts of power."

"Do it!" Chuck said.

Red rolled his eyes. "I don't want to freak anyone else nor cause property damage to the hospital. Maybe some other time." He felt someone tap his shoulder. He turned around to see Chuck handing him a bag of popcorn.

"Can you heat this?"

Red groaned. He took the bag, placed on his hand and made the popcorn in seconds by releasing heat from his hand. He handed the bag to Chuck who immediately started to devour its contents. "Guys! We have a living, breathing, walking microwave! How cool is that?"

"I'm not reheating your food, if that's what you want."

"Come on!"

"No!" But Red had to admit, it was pretty amusing watching Chuck act like a hatchling in awe of his abilities.

"Can you do other things besides fire?"

"Not that I know of."

The next day, while he was walking towards the anger management class, he noticed curious stares. He did his best to ignore them, but they were just overwhelming him. Either they were shocked at the fact that he was half phoenix or shocked at the fact that he was son of Incendio. Probably both. He just hoped no one will treat him any differently. He finally reached Matilda's house. Everyone else was already inside. Terrence was listening to Matilda speak about something while Chuck and Bomb sat in their pillows chatting about food. Chuck's eye was completely black and his leg rested stretched out over another pillow while Bomb looked to be fine with his wounded ribcage.

"Hey, guys." Red greeted.

"Red!" Chuck yelled. "The phoenix is in the house!"

Red groaned but sat down anyway. He should have known. He just shrugged it anyway.

In the afternoon, he took a walk by the beach. Something shiny caught his eyes in the sand. He turned his head towards it and saw the crystals his talons made last night when he was on fire. He approached them and picked one up. He held it up into the sunlight. This particular crystal was as big and his hand and the bigger of the bunch. The sunlight reflected through it and made the illusion of a dancing flame inside it for just a moment. Red smiled at the rare crystal.

At least, his powers were greeted with just curiosity and amazement, very few cataloged him as dangerous. Maybe they were right. Maybe he was dangerous, but that danger assured them some peace of mind for a long time. Those pigs surely wouldn't try to attack an island with a phoenix inside it.

He decided to take the crystal home, as a small souvenir for a significant moment of his life. Everyone knew his secret and his origins now. Some had even directly called him Mighty Red. His eyes glowed a bit red when he felt something strange within the crystal. The crystal started to turn blood red. Red gasped as he saw the transformation from a simple crystal, to what it looked like a ruby. "What the…" He whispered to himself. He did not understand what had happened, but one thing was for sure: he understood nothing.

He eyed the crystal, now ruby, in question. Did he turned it into a ruby? If so, there was nothing about it in the book.

 _'It's a little bit more complicated than just a chemical reaction, love…_ ' He heard his mother's voice in his head. For some reason, it seemed to be playfully teasing him.

"Excuse me? Are you using those?" A voice said behind him. It sounded sweet and gentle, but at the same time fearless and strong.

Red turned around and saw a female red bird with a yellow bow on her head and a basket on her hands. Her feathers were soft looking and her eyes irradiated kindness and love. "I'm sorry?" Red asked as he was little bit engulfed in her beauty.

"I asked if you were using those crystals." She said. "I saw that you made them, but since you left them on the beach last night I thought I could use them for my next crafts class project." She started to walk away. "But if you're using them, that's ok, I can get crystals somewhere else."

"Oh!" Red said. "I'm not using them, I was just looking for… this one." He signaled the ruby. "You can take them all if you need them. I can make some more if you need."

The female shook her head and smiled as she kneeled down to pick the crystals. "Don't worry, this will be enough."

Red put the ruby aside and kneeled down and helped her put the crystal in the basket. The first crystal the female touched turned blood red, a ruby, like the one he had touched. "I'm sorry, I think that was me. I'm still trying to figure out why."

The female smiled. "That's ok. I rather like this one." She held the smaller ruby in her hand. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all."

As he reached out for the last crystal, he found himself touching the female's hand instead. They both looked up and stared at each other's eyes. "I'm sorry. Again." Red let go of her hand.

The female laughed. "That's ok." She placed the remaining crystal in the basket. She held up the small red ruby in her hand. Unlike his, hers was small enough to fit in her hand. The size difference wasn't much. "You said you're still trying to understand why you turned those two red?"

"Yes and actually, I think they're now rubies. You can tell by the different shine they give out."

The female looked down in surprise. "That's funny. My name is Ruby. What a coincidence." She giggled.

Red stared. "You're name is actually Ruby?"

Ruby nodded.

"Whoa. Coincidence indeed. I'm Red."

"I know. Nice to meet you."

He helped her get up and handed her the basket. "Well, Ruby, I hope to see you again soon."

"I hope so too. Something tells me we'll be meeting each other sooner than expected."

Red smiled. "Well, I'm looking forward to that."

Ruby gave him a smile. "Well, I need to go. Craft projects don't make themselves alone." She laughed. "Bye."

"Bye." Red said as he watched the female walk away.

When Ruby was out of sight, he looked down at his own ruby in question.

 _'Those are love crystals, my prince…'_ His mother told him.

' _What!?_ ' He asked.

 _'The crystals phoenixes make with sand are called love crystals. They have magical properties that tell you when the love of your life has finally arrived. They turn into rubies when that happens…'_ He could even hear her small amused laughter.

' _That means…_ '

' _That means that Ruby is the girl meant for you, just like you are the bird meant for her… The crystal she touched turned into a ruby just like yours…'_

Red gulped. ' _That's the girl I'm meant to spend the rest of my life with?'_

' _Indeed…'_

Red smiled. ' _I wouldn't mind, actually. She's lovely and I can tell she has a distinctive personality. I would really like to get to know her better._ '

' _Good, because you're soulmates. You're bonded for the rest of your lives anyway.'_ The queen deadpanned.

 _'SOULMATES!? Mom!_ '

He could hear his mother's distant laughter in his mind. ' _I sure hope to get VIP seats for that wedding, you do have brothers and sisters in other places…_ '

' _Wedding!?_ _Mother, you're not talking about this now…_ '

' _Very well, I'll talk about it next time you see her…_ '

' _Mom? Don't_.' He said. He heard her laughter one more time before he felt her presence leave his mind. He smiled and looked down at the Ruby in his hand. Maybe things will finally start to look up for the better. He grasped the ruby in his hand like his life depended on it. Maybe it did. He made his way back home to call it a day. One weird, strangely good day. Unbeknownst to him, the red female grasped the ruby like her life depended on it too.

There was a fire that was ignited that day, one that even Red couldn't control.

 **There you have it, folks! I really hope you liked this AU and I hope to hear your opinions on reviews. I don't think I will write a second chapter, but don't ever lose hope! I just won't make any promises just in case. Blessings for all and have a good day.**


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